Aug 26, 2016

A Cuban reunion…in Krakow

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Remarkably, after meeting six strangers on a bus in Cuba a reunion was organised five months later…destination…Krakow!

After purchasing a cheap Ryanair ticket I was sat at the very back of the plane with passenger’s bottoms and even more uncomfortably their crotches inches away from my face as they all queued for one of the two lavatories that my back was leaning against. Then, as people had relieved themselves they had to squeeze past the line of waiting toilet visitors which meant a thrust of a bottom or a groin even further into my face. I just pretended to be sleeping and kept thinking to myself how different this experience would be had I paid the additional £6 to allocate my own seat!

The mounds…


Two hours later I was in the Polish former capital of Krakow and strolling to the Royal Palace to meet up with my fellow Cuba travellers. The streets are full of such beautiful buildings and stunning street art. There is so much to see in this UNESCO World Heritage city the most importantly being the former Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz (very sickening but it has to be visited), the Wieliczka Salt Mine, Jewish Ghetto and being with two Aussies we also did a walk to one of the four historical mounds around the city. They chose the Kosciuszko Mound as it was the only Polish word that seemed to roll off the Aussie tongue due to the fact that the Australian Snowy Mountain range has a slightly bigger mound with the same name; and it is actually the highest mountain in Australia at 2,228 metres which I have to say in world terms is just a mere bulge.

Anyone for pork knuckle…

The Main Market Square in the Old Town has an array of restaurants – pork knuckle and dumplings are on the menu if you fancy trying a local cuisine but I can recommend lots of other dishes especially the pizza – one of the best pizzas I’ve eaten outside of Peru! Yes, Peru has some of the amazing thin and crispy pizzas all cooked in stone wood fired ovens!


Bugler in the tower…

One of the warming and unique traditions I witnessed was the hourly bugle call from the tower of St Mary’s Church in the Old Town where a trumpeter pokes his brass instrument out of a tiny window at the top of the church tower and plays a tune from all four windows facing north, south, east and west. It is said that this bugle call dates back to the Middle Ages when it announced the opening and closing of the city gates. According to a popular legend (which I always prefer) the very abrupt end of the melody is to commemorate a trumpeter from Krakow who was shot through the throat by a Tatar archer in the 1200s when Mongols invaded the city. But whatever the reason it is such a lovely thing to hear and to see his trumpet sparkling in the sunshine…god help him in the harsh winter months…the tune could get slightly wobbly and discordant from shivering hands and frozen lips!

The joy of budget airlines…

Four fun packed days (with some sadness too when visiting Auschwitz) with my Cuba friends before being kindly allocated an identical seat by the Ryanair staff for the journey home. Bladders must be stronger in the evening as I didn’t have as many bodies in my face, however, bodies were substituted by an incessantly screaming child in the seat in front. Don’t you just love flying?

Links:

Explore the top hotels in Krakow

Find a good travel book here to take with you to Krakow

See more pictures on TripAdvisor

For more funny travel tales you may also enjoy reading counting bridges in Prague… and whale watching in Mexico…such a magical experience

One thought on “A Cuban reunion…in Krakow

  1. Pingback: Counting bridges in Prague... - Sharon Cracknell

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